K Line, NYK, Toyota Tsusho and Chubu Electric Power agree to launch an LNG supply operation in the Chubu region.

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Updated on 10 May 2018 12:35 GMT

K Line, Chubu Electric Power, Toyota Tsusho Corporation, and NYK Line have announced that they have agreed to launch an LNG bunkering business in Japan, establishing two joint venture businesses on Thursday: Central LNG Marine Fuel Japan Corporation and Central LNG Shipping Japan Corporation.

Central LNG Marine Fuel Japan Corporation will be the entity responsible for LNG bunkering, whilst Central LNG Shipping Japan Corporation will be the owner of the LNG supply vessel used to perform ship-to-ship deliveries.

The latest development follows an announcement in January that the aforementioned firms had begun joint discussions on the commercialization of a new business to supply LNG as a marine fuel to ships in the Chubu region of Japan.

The Chubu region includes Nagoya, which was the port to record Japan's fourth-biggest container volume in 2016, handling 2.65 million TEUs, according to data released by the Nagoya municipal government.

Back in 2016, NYK also teamed up with Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism and Tokyo Gas to examine the possibility of establishing LNG bunkering stations in Japan, with Yokohama used as a test case.